Thoughts on new Bushnell Elite 4500 2.5-10 x 40 scopes?

[Leatherneck]

Didn't have much luck asking on another forum. I see the new Elite 4500s have a better eye relief and have the Exo-Barrier, supposedly a newer RainGuard, that some people were impressed with in the past. You can get these for super cheap right now with a rebate. Just wondering if anyone has tried them? I know they're probably not much of a scope for low light, but I was thinking of getting one for a rainy day rifle. Think these would be decent for that and max 300 yard shots? Do these rain coatings really work? Is the Zeiss Locutec just as good in the rain?

Thanks for any feedback.

 

[Macintosh]

I havent used a bushnell elite scope in a decade, but they used to be pretty good in my opinion. My mid to upper-end bushnell scopes have been some of my most reliable, outperforming some of the big names over time. I dont know where the “new” elite scopes fit in, but I’d be curious. Edit: the elites were always $1000-ish scopes, so clearly this is different. it LOOKS like a rebadge of their “trophy extreme” 2.5-10, but even that was more $ 6 or 8 years ago. I got one of these years ago from expert voice or one of the pro sites for $50, and the thing wont die, it has held zero for close to a decade including some plane flights and hard falls (cannot say that on some more $$$ scopes Ive owned) and has decent glass and easy eyebox, especially for where the price point was. That scope was made in japan I believe, I still own it. I had another model made in china from them that wasnt nearly as good, so hard to tell.

 

[Typhon_0595]

I bought my Elite 2.5-10x40 in Oct 2021 (made in S. Korea) and it has stayed clear during a steady drizzly hunt in late Nov in VA for me. The one observation I had was the black ring around the scope picture was thicker than I anticipated. The actual clear opening diameter of the objective end is 45mm, and maybe that helps explain the thicker black ring around the viewing area when viewing through the scope.

 

[Country5175]

Didn't have much luck asking on another forum. I see the new Elite 4500s have a better eye relief and have the Exo-Barrier, supposedly a newer RainGuard, that some people were impressed with in the past. You can get these for super cheap right now with a rebate. Just wondering if anyone has tried them? I know they're probably not much of a scope for low light, but I was thinking of getting one for a rainy day rifle. Think these would be decent for that and max 300 yard shots? Do these rain coatings really work? Is the Zeiss Locutec just as good in the rain?

Thanks for any feedback.

I’ve been a big believer in the rain guard coating on the bushnell elite scopes for years now and own 5 3200, 4200, or 4500 series scopes. After I missed out on probably the biggest deer I’ve ever seen hunting in a heavy rain because I couldn’t see through my scope to make a shot, I started buying the elites for all my guns. I love them and I’ve never had one fail on me and I’ve probably owned most of them for over 10 years now. I think the new oleophobic coating on the 4500 is even better than the original rainguard coating too. Haven’t missed a shot on a deer since.

 

[Rich M]

I bought a 4500 and messed up, shoulda got 2.5-10 instead of 4-12 or 4-16. It has bdc and i like bushnell.

Never had a bushnell fail or shift zero on me. I use see thru scope covers for rain or snow concerns. Easy enough to remove if cant see thru covers.